Condensate valve assembly

ABSTRACT

A condensate valve comprising a housing having a chamber for the accumulation of liquid and an outlet passage from the chamber leading to a central chamber from which liquid is discharged to the atmosphere. A double-acting valve member controls the outlet passage. A diaphragm closes the central chamber and separates it from a pressure chamber. A manually operable device is provided for holding the valve member in a shut-off position or in a position to drain the condensate valve. A separate annular heater assembly is disposed upon the housing in encircling relation to the liquid accumulation chamber to prevent freezing.

This is a division, of application Ser. No. 546,736, filed Feb. 3, 1975now U.S. Pat. No. 3,977,426.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention represents an improvement on the valve constructiondisclosed in my U.S. Pat. No. 3,783,889.

My improved condensate valve is generally of simplified construction inwhich the housing consists of upper and lower body parts, eachpreferably in the form of a one-piece casting.

The condesnate valve of the present invention has an improved bibb valvemember formed of two identical half sections each of integral one-piececonstruction and preferably of molded rubber.

In accordance with the present invention the diaphragm may be of asingle type diaphragm but preferably is the double type, that is oneconsistingl consisting two separable layers. The double type diaphragmprovides greater ejection capacity.

Additional features of my invention includes the provision of animproved manual push-button type drain or shutoff device. If desired, apull-chain type operator may be provided for the device or a lever maybe employed to hold the device open for complete bleed down of thesystem or to hold the device in shut off position.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a central vertical sectional view of a condensate valveconstructed in accordance with my invention and shown connected to anair or gas supply tank.

FIG. 2 is similar to FIG. 1 but shows the valve member in a differentposition. This Figure also shows a pull-chain type control for themanual drain or shutoff device.

FIG. 3 is like FIG. 2 but shows the layers of the double-type diaphragmseparated.

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of the condensate valve on a reducedscale, showing a lever in position to keep the drain open for completebleed down of the system.

The condensate or drain valve is shown connected to an air or gas supplytank to remove condensate therefrom. The tank may for example be of thetype used on vehicles to provide a supply of compressed air foroperating the brakes. However, it should be understood that thecondensate valve is useful in connection with other types of tanks andfor other purposes whether or not the tank contains air or gas andwhether or not the pressure in the tank is maintained above atmosphericpressure.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, the valve is generallydesignated 10 and is shown as being screw threaded into an opening inthe bottom of the tank 12 which may be adapted to contain a supply ofair or gas to be used for diversified purposes, which supply of air orgas is preferably under a pressure above atmospheric pressure.Specifically, the bottom wall of the tank has an opening 14 in which issecured the internally threaded member 16. The hollow or tubularupwardly extending portion or stem 18 of the upper body 20 of the valvehousing threads through the member 16 into the opening in tank 12. Thuscondensate in tank 12 may drain into the condensate valve through thestem 18 of the valve housing.

The condensate valve 10, as already stated, has an upper body 20 ofwhich the upwardly extending portion or stem 18 is an integral part. Italso has a lower body 22. Preferably the upper and lower bodies 20 and22 are each one-piece metal castings and are secured together byfasteners 23. Essentially these upper and lower bodies 20 and 22 make upthe housing of the valve which is designated 24.

The upwardly extending portion or stem 18 is of uniform circularinternal cross section from its open upper end downward throughout amajor portion of its extent to define a liquid accumulation chamber 26.An outlet is provided for exhausting liquid from chamber 26, such outletincluding a central chamber 28 formed in the lower or main portion ofthe upper body 20. This main or lower portion is of generally conicalform, having the stem 18 extending vertically upward from the centerthereof. The upper body 20 has outlet ports 30 which open into theatmosphere or which may lead to suitable conduits for carrying awayexhaust liquid from the central chamber 28. A vertical passage 32extends through the central partition portion 34 from the liquid chamber26 to the central chamber 28.

A vertically reciprocable double-acting bibb valve member 36 extendsthrough passage 32. The valve member 36 is made up of identical upperand lower bibb halves 38,40 which preferably are not interconnected butmerely abut as shown and which therefore are interchangeable with oneanother. They are held in pressure contact at all times by spring 62more fully described hereinafter. The bibbs 38,40 forming the valvemember 36 are preferably each of one-piece molded rubber construction.Each bibb has an enlarged circular head 42 and a stem 44 of reducedcross section extending axially from the head. The shoulder of the headadjacent the stem is tapered so as to be conical in form to provide asealing surface 46. The stem of each bibb is polygonal in cross section,in this instance square, so as to allow liquid to flow through thepassage 32 from the liquid chamber 26 to the central chamber 28 when thevalve member is in an intermediate position between the two limitingpositions shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. The corners 48 of the stem between theflat sides are blunted as shown to ride on the wall of passage 32 andguide the valve member when it moves vertically.

As seen, the bibb head 42 of the upper bibb 38 is disposed in the liquidaccumulation chamber 26 and the head 42 of the lower bibb 40 is disposedin the central chamber 28. The central partition portion 34 has an upperannular valve seat 50 and a lower annular valve seat 52. These valveseats 50 and 52 are at the upper and lower ends of the passage 32 andare formed at the same angle as the sealing surfaces 46 of the heads ofthe valve member for full surface-to-surface sealing contact therewithas shown in FIGS. 1 to 3. It will be apparent that when the valve memberis at the lower limit of its movement, as shown in FIG. 1, the sealingsurface 46 of the upper valve head engages the seat 50 to prevent theoutflow of liquid from the accumulation chamber 26, and that in theupper limit of the valve member the sealing surface 46 of the lower headengages the valve seat 52 likewise to close the accumulation chamber 26and prevent the outflow of liquid. However, in intermediate positions ofthe valve member 36, liquid collected in the accumulation chamber 26 maypass through the spaces between the flat sides of the stem of the valvemember 36 and the passage 32 to be discharged through the centralchamber 28 and ports 30.

The lower boundary of the central chamber 28 of the upper body 20 isdefined by a flexible diaphragm 54 which is clamped between the outermargins of the upper and lower bodies 20 and 22 of housing 24. As shown,the outer marginal portion of the upper surface of the lower body has anannular ridge 56 which projects into the diaphragm to form a betterseal. The diaphragm may be formed of rubber or rubber-like materialwhich is compressible and forms an adequate seal, also being somewhatelastic. In the present instance, the diaphragm is formed of a wovenfabric which is rubber-coated on both sides.

The diaphragm 54 may be of the single or double type depending upon theejection capacity desired. The diaphragm in this instance is shown asbeing of the double type, that is, it is comprised of separate upper andlower layers 54a and 54b, for greater ejection capacity. The lower layerhas a small metering aperture 55 therein which may have a diameter onthe order of about 0.020 inches. The diameter of the orifice depends onthe desired ejection capacity, and while this dimension may varyconsiderably depending upon ejection requirements, it usually will befrom about 0.012 inches to about 0.022.

With further references to each of the bibbs or halves 38,40 making upthe valve member 36, it will be seen that projecting from each head 42at the side opposite the stem is a central boss 58 which preferably iscircular in form and integrally molded with the bibb. A washer 60 isfitted over the boss 58 of the lower bibb and engages the upper surfaceof the diaphragm 54. Pressure engagement of the diaphragm against thevalve member is therefore spread over the relatively large surface ofthe washer. The washer on its upper surface engages the shoulder of thehead surrounding the boss. The washer may be permanently secured to thebibb but need not be because there is always a pressure engagementbetween the washer and the diaphragm to hold the washer in place.

The boss on the head of the upper bibb provides a pilot for thecompression coil spring 62 which bears down upon the valve member with ayielding pressure. The upper end of the spring is held within theaccumulation chamber 26 by a retaining ring 64 which may be an annularsplit ring pressing outward against the wall of the chamber to holditself frictionally in place. Preferably a screen 66 is disposed overthe top of the retaining ring to filter out impurities which wouldotherwise enter the condensate valve.

The lower body 22 is generally cone-shaped. A pressure chamber 68 isformed in the upper surface of the lower body 22. The dished shape ofthis surface prevents rupture of the diaphragm. The upper boundary ofthe pressure chamber is defined by the diaphragm. A pressure inletcircuit 70 is secured to the lower body 22 and communicates with thepressure chamber 68.

A manual shutoff and drain device 72 is provided. Such device is in theform of a plunger 74 slidable in a vertical passage 76 formed in thethickened central portion of the lower body 22. The plunger has anenlarged head 76 on the upper end disposed within the pressure chamberopposite the center of the diaphragm. The plunger also has a circulargroove in which an O-ring seal or the like 80 is provided for slidingcontact with the wall of passage 76 to seal the pressure chamber. Theplunger 74 may be manually raised from the FIG. 1 position to lift thevalve member 36 to its upper limit sealing off the accumulation chamber26 to shut off the condensate valve, or to lift the valve member to anintermediate position between its upper and lower limits to drain thetank.

FIG. 2 illustrates a pull-chain type operator for the manual shutoffvalve comprising a bell crank lever 82 pivoted at 84 to a bracket 86mounted on the conduit 70. When the pull chain 86 connected to the ballcrank is pulled, the bell crank elevates the plunger 74 to the positiondesired either to shut off or drain the condensate valve.

FIG. 4 shows a lever 90 mounted on the conduit 70 having a fixed portionadapted to engage the bottom of the plunger. This fixed portion mayextend at the desired angle to hold the plunger either in its shut offor its drain position. The lever is intended to swing on an arc aboutthe axis of the conduit from the operative position shown in FIG. 4 toan inoperative position withdrawn from the plunger.

A heater assembly in FIG. 4 is provided for preventing icing of liquidaccumulated in the chamber 30. This heater assembly is designated 92 andis in the form of an annulus. As shown, it rests upon the upper body 20in encircling relation to the stem portion 18 in which the accumulationchamber 26 is disposed. The heater assembly conventionally may includeelectric heating elements operated by external wiring 94 and athermostat set to respond to a predetermined low temperature. The heaterassembly 92 preferably is not fixed to the condensate valve but merelyrests upon the upper body of the housing. It may be dispensed with ininstances where cold weather is not expected. However, it may easily beinstalled on the valve when desired, as shown, because of its convenientform and construction and merely rests on the valve around the chamber26.

In use, the condensate valve 10 may be connected to the tank 12 as shownin the drawing. If this valve is used in connection with the air brakesystem of a vehicle, the line connected to the brake system may alsodirect pressure into chamber 68 through conduit 70 to raise thediaphragm 54 and hence the valve member 36 from its lower limit shown inFIG. 1 to its upper limit shown in FIG. 2 in which the sealing surface46 closes on the seat 52 whenever the brakes are applied. Pressure fluidin the chamber 68 will flow slowly through the aperture 55 between thediaphragm layers and separate the lower layer from the upper layer whilethe upper layer holds the valve member at its upper limit as in FIG 3.Then when the pressure in the pressure chamber is relieved, the spring62 will return the valve member 36 to its lower limit causing sealingsurface 46 to close on seat 50 and again close the liquid chamber 26.

This return of the valve member 36 to its lower limit will be a meteredor delayed return movement because of the restricted outflow of fluidfrom between the diaphragm layers. While the valve member is between itslimits, that is during the time it is moving from one limit to theother, liquid in the accumulation chamber 26 will be discharged throughthe passage 32, chamber 28 and outlet ports 30. The metered or delayedreturn movement of the valve member to its lower limit caused by themetering orifice 55 increases the time during which liquid can dischargefrom the accumulation chamber. Accordingly, the ejection capacity of thevalve is increased by this metering action. A relatively large orifice,of 0.022 inches diameter for example, will produce only a brief delay,one of perhaps 1 or 2 seconds, whereas a small orifice of about 0.012inches diameter will produce a longer delay of perhaps 4 or 5 seconds.The longer the delay, the greater the ejection capacity. However, toolong a delay caused by too small an orifice may dissipate tank pressureexcessively.

The preferred construction having an aperture 55 on one layer of adouble-type diaphragm provides increased ejection capacity. Obviouslythe valve will function as a condensate valve but of reduced ejectioncapacity if the aperture is eliminated from one of the diaphragm layersor if a diaphragm of the single type is employed.

In some instances, the condensate valve 10 may be used with a tank whosepressure is maintained by an air compressor which has a regulating orunloading device to operate a relief valve when the regulated pressurein the tank has been reached. Air from the unloading device would thenbe piped to the pressure chamber 68 of the condensate valve to raisevalve member 36 to its upper limit. Then when the tank pressure dropsbelow the regulated air pressure, the air from the compressor would nolonger be directed to the pressure chamber 68 but would be delivered tothe tank to build up its pressure again. Hence the pressure in thechamber 68 would be relieved so that the valve member 50 might return byspring pressure to the illustrated position.

It should be noted that the valve member 36 operates twice each time airunder pressure is applied to the pressure chamber 68, once when the airpressure is initially supplied to the chamber and a second time when itis relieved. During each such interval of movement of the valve member36 liquid in the chamber 26 is relieved. It will be understood of coursethat the aperture 55 meters or retards the movement of the valve member36 in one direction only, that is from its upper to its lower limit, notin the reverse direction.

The bibb halves 38 and 40 making up the valve member 36 are identicaland interchangeable, as stated. The upper bibb half 38 may be removedand replaced through the open upper end of the upwardly extendingportion or stem 18 of the upper body 20 when the valve is separated fromthe tank 12 and the retaining ring 64 and screen 66 are removed from theliquid chamber 26. The lower bibb half 40 may be removed through thecentral chamber 28 upon release of the fasteners 23, separation of theupper and lower housing bodies 20 and 22 and removal of diaphragm 54.

What I claim as my invention is:
 1. A condensate valve comprising ahousing, an open-top liquid chamber in the upper portion of said housingfor the accumulation of liquid, a liquid inlet to said liquid chamber, asecond chamber in said housing beneath said liquid chamber having anoutlet port, said housing having a partition separating said chambers, apassage extending downward through said partition from said liquidchamber to said second chamber, a valve member reciprocable in saidpassage, said valve member having a first sealing portion disposed insaid liquid chamber and having a second sealing portion disposed in saidsecond chamber, said first and second sealing portions being larger indiameter than said passage, said partition having valve seats atopposite ends of said passage, said sealing portions being engageablewith said valve seats at the opposite limits of movement of said valvemember to close said passage against the flow of liquid from said liquidchamber, said valve member between said sealing portions being so formedrelative to said passage as to allow liquid to pass from said liquidchamber to said second chamber when said valve member is between itsopposite limits, a flexible diaphragm defining the bottom of said secondchamber, a fluid pressure chamber in said housing beneath and separatedfrom said second chamber by said diaphragm, said valve member beingmovable by said diaphragm to its upper limit in response to fluidpressure in said pressure chamber, removable spring means in said liquidchamber for moving said valve member to its lower limit when thepressure in said pressure chamber is relieved, said housing comprisingan upper part having said liquid chamber, said second chamber and saidpartition, a lower housing part having said pressure chamber, meansremovably securing said upper and lower housing parts together, saiddiaphragm being marginally clamped between said upper and lower housingparts, said valve member comprising upper and lower separable parts heldin abutting relation by said spring means and said diaphragm, said upperpart of said valve member having said first sealing portion and saidlower part of said valve member having said second sealing portion, saidvalve member between said sealing portions being in the form of anelongated stem of reduced cross-section relative to said sealingportions, said upper part of said valve member being an integral piececomposed of said first sealing portion and the upper end portion of saidstem, said lower part of said valve member being an integral piececomposed of said second sealing portion and the lower end portion ofsaid stem, said upper part of said valve member being removable uponremoval of said spring means through the open top of said liquid chamberand the lower part of said valve member being removable upon separationof said housing parts and removal of said diaphragm, a drain or shutoffdevice comprising a plunger reciprocably mounted on said lower housingpart beneath said valve member capable of raising said diaphragm toraise said valve member to its upper limit or to an intermediateposition between its upper and lower limits, and means for raising saidplunger including a bell crank lever pivoted on said lower housing part,and a pull member for pivoting said bell crank lever.